Subject: Unidentified insect Geographic location of the bug: Wales LL38 2PX Date: 08/14/2018 Time: 04:01 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: Is this a huntsman? It was in my tissue box one morning . How you want your letter signed: L.morton

Harvestman: Dicranopalpus ramosus

Dear L.morton, This is not a spider. It is a Harvestman, Dicranopalpus ramosus, in the order Opiliones, and it is an introduced species in the U.K. According to NatureSpot: “The species has spread across Europe from Morocco. As early as 1957, it was reported in Bournemouth in southern England, from where it spread. It reached Scotland in 2000.” This might be a symptom of global warming.

Subject: Unknown Harvestmen Geographic location of the bug: South Mississippi Date: 05/25/2018 Time: 02:57 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman: Hi bugman, I’m an environmental biology student from Mississippi who loves all things nature. As a hobby I collect salvaged insects that die of natural causes, because I hate the thought of killing anything. I was looking around in my garage when I discovered what I believe to be some sort of harvestmen entangled in a cobweb. At first glance I thought it may just be the cephalothorax of a spider, but upon closer inspection there are no broken off attachment points where an additional abdomen would have been located. It was very decicated when I found it, so several legs fell off upon retrieving it. I’ve done my best to glue them back on in the correct position. It is a rusty orange color with a defined “Y” behind its eyes in a cream color. It’s hindmost legs are attatched directly to the rear of its abdomen. It’s chelicerae also appear to have an underdeveloped claw like appearance. It does not possess “fangs” as a spider would though. I’ve never seen anything like this and it would be a huge help if you could help me identify it! How you want your letter signed: Jaden Hendrix

Harvestman

Hi Jaden, We believe we have identified this Harvestman as a member of the genus Vonones thanks to these BugGuide images.

Related posts:

Subject: Bug found walking under leaf litter Geographic location of the bug: South Carolina midlands Date: 09/03/2017 Time: 02:57 PM EDT I found this creature in late summer when clearing a thick layer of leaf litter off the ground. It was walking oddly (it’s back legs almost bent backwards over its other legs?) and the color caught my eye. I scooped it into a glass jar and took some pics but I can’t figure out what it is no matter how much time I spend googling. It was fascinating to watch and I’d love to know what to call this little dude. How you want your letter signed — Appreciative Novice

Harvestman

Dear Appreciative Novice, This is a Harvestman in the Arachnid Order Opiliones. Based on this BugGuide image, we are confident it is in the genus Vonones, but we are uncertain of the species. Harvestmen are sometimes called Daddy-Long-Legs, and though they resemble Spiders, unlike Spiders they do not have venom, so they are harmless.

Subject: Summer Spiders from the Italian Mountains Location: Dolomites Mountains, Italy August 24, 2017 1:06 PM Dear bugman, I just came back from a trip to the Dolomites mountains in northern Italy. I had many encounters with spiders. I took a picture of some of them, hoping that you could help me identifying them. Can you? Thanks!SaverioPS: I have better quality files if needed.

Harvestman

Dear Saverio, Though they resemble Spiders, most of your images are actually Harvestmen or Daddy-Long-Legs in the order Opiliones. Unlike Spiders, they do not have venom. It appears you have three different species represented.

Subject: Light Gray beetle? Location: Denver, Pennsylvania July 27, 2017 5:22 am Hi, Last weekend my family and I were camping in Denver PA and my daughter came across this beetle type insect. He was eating a daddy long leg. Any idea what he is? Thanks! Signature: Curious in PA

Wheel Bug Nymph eats Harvestman

Dear Curious in PA, This predator is not a beetle. It is an immature Assassin Bug known as a Wheel Bug. The prey is a member of the order Opiliones, commonly called a Harvestman or as you have indicated, a Daddy-Long-Legs.

Subject: Desert Spider near Borrego Springs Location: Anza-Borrego desert April 23, 2017 6:02 am Season: spring Habitat: sandstone rock with eroded wind crevices (I noticed one of the spiders retreat into a small wind eroded den in the sandstone just large enough for it to comfortably fit (how convenient for it to escape my camera and curiosity) Abundance: there were several of these climbing around the area I had camped at outdoors the night before. I may have though twice about sleeping without a tent had I know but none of them bit me so it all turned out fine. Location: Anza-Borrego desert, Southern California, east of San Diego Coloration: designed to blend in with the course sand in the area Signature: Chris Hunkeler

Desert Harvestman

Dear Chris, This is not a spider. It is a non-venomous Arachnid known as a Harvestman, and we believe it is a Desert Harvestman in the genus Eurybunus. According to BugGuide: “Adults found in winter and Spring.”

April 29, 2017 Wow, this is amazing. I had not heard anything for a day or two and when I started trying to investigate myself I became completely overwhelmed with trying to identify the arachnid. I couldn’t really see how many eyes it have for my photo much less would I have been able to see it’s genitalia or look it up in some book and I rather quickly became discouraged so thank you so much for your identification. I was very curious and I will check out other images of what you’re saying it is before I go ahead and update the description on my Flickr page. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I really appreciate it.